For me, hugs are the way to go. To actually want and feel safe in physically getting close enough to anyone such that you don’t mind rubbing your body against theirs is the way to show that you trust and love that person. And to do it well, hug really tightly and for a long time.
That’s what I did just today to my mom. We had a very personal discussion, we lay the boundaries of our expectations on each other, and after that, just before she was able to take three steps away from me, I walked quickly behind her and hugged her like I’ve never done before. It felt good.
Same thing happened with my dad not very long ago. He was buying me stuff, and I had always been somewhat afraid of him. However, I knew that he bought me more than my mom told him to buy for me, and for that he’d probably get a scolding from her. I stood by the car for a while, hesitated for a bit, before just giving him a hug. I could tell that he was surprised, but he laughed happily and hugged me back. That’s the closest I’ve ever felt to my dad before. I should do it more often..
Yeah.. rather personal here, but I’m sharing them just to prove my point. A lot of the time, words are cheap. Actions say what you want to tell people much more than you can possibly believe.